Sight
by sanitysugar
Summary: She'd never wanted to be the Girl-Who-Lived, now she didn't have to be.


Sight

Rue Boudica Potter.

Rue, from the tradition of the Evans to name their daughters after flowers and for the regret her parents had for having a child during wartime and knowing that one or both of them would not live to see her second birthday. Boudica, from the tradition of the Potters to name their children after kings and queens and conquerors. Potter, the name of her father's family for over 20 generations, a name weighed down with so many expectations it was a miracle she was still able to stand.

Rue Boudica Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived, the Chosen One, and other such unnecessary titles, now they could add the Girl-Who-Fell.

There hadn't been a second to think, to realize what was about to happen, her body had just moved. She had seen Sirius dueling Bellatrix, unable to live up to his namesake even when his life was on the line as he laughed and taunted with every spell he fired. She had seen him getting steadily closer to the veil, though he hadn't realized it, and had been steadily making her way through the battlefield the Department of Mysteries had turned into to reach him. She had seen him lose his footing, forced to catch himself as another spell was fast approaching he would not be able to dodge.

Rue had screamed for him, the sound of her voice carrying through the room as she had finally made it to Sirius. She had used every bit of her speed to make it in time, every bit of her strength to push him out of the way. The spell missed him as his expression turned to shock and horror, meeting her own determined look. Rue had smiled then, as the spell hit her and pushed her towards the veil and out of Sirius' reach. She had saved him, her godfather that was really the only father she'd ever known no matter how little time they'd been able to spend together.

Bellatrix's spell didn't have the chance to take effect before Rue was floating, her body passing through the strange material of the veil and disappearing from sight. She wasn't there to hear the tortured scream Sirius let out as she disappeared, to hear the insane laughter from Bellatrix, to see the absolute stillness and disbelief from both sides.

_HPBB_

"Heeheehee. I've never seen anyone sleep in a grave before."

Rue awoke with a start, eyes snapping open to look for the source of the voice before she could think better of it. She caught a glimpse of silver and black before closing them again with a hiss, a hand coming up to cover them for good measure. The movement brought the rest of her aching body to her attention, though she had no clue why it felt as if a dragon had slept on top of her. The last thing she remembered was…

"Am I dead?"

Rue's voice came out painful and quiet, her throat throbbing along with the rest of her body. Her question was met with silence, prompting her to try looking around again, when a pair of black boots landed beside her followed by long silver hair overtaking her vision, "Seems to me you're still very much alive. Did you expect to be dead?"

There was amusement in the man's tone, far more than would have been considered appropriate if Rue had actually cared, but she was busy trying to wrap her around the fact that her heart was still beating. She had gone through the veil, there was no way she hadn't, so why was she still alive? The Potter Luck must have struck again, she couldn't even die like a normal witch, "I should be, no one is supposed to survive what I went through."

"And what might that be?" There was still amusement, though it was softer, and Rue took a moment to look at the man as much as she could without actually moving. His hair was long and silver, covering his eyes completely and brushing over the ground where he was crouched next to her. There was a grin on his face, likely a permanent fixture, along with a scar on his right cheek that disappeared beneath his bangs and another on his neck that made it appear as if someone had tried to behead him. His clothes were unremarkable, a simple black robe with matching boots, the only memorable accessory a chain of lockets tied around his waist.

He was far from the strangest character Rue had ever met, his outfit was quite tame compared to some of the fashions she had seen in the wizarding world, and he seemed cordial enough considering she was apparently inside of a grave. Her magic wasn't stirring protectively, so he didn't mean her any harm, but she could also see he wasn't as human as he appeared. Closing her eyes, Rue relaxed her aching body as much as she could on the surprisingly soft dirt and decided she couldn't be bothered to care about the Statute of Secrecy anymore, if it even applied to this man, "I went through the Veil of Death. No one who's ever gone through it has returned, the general consensus is that they died."

"Hoho, sure about that are ye?" Rue could hear the rustling of fabric before something large and warm was draped over her, making her open her eyes to look at the man in surprise. She realized for the first time how cold she was, her body curling into the welcoming warmth before she could stop it and making her let out a hiss at the pain it caused, "Hmm, are ye in pain?"

There seemed to be genuine concern in the man's tone, the amusement absent for the first time, the kindness from this stranger making something warm curl in her chest. A sudden wave of lethargy washed over her, making her frown as she now had to fight to keep her eyes open, and managed to give the man a nod before she was pulled under.

Undertaker blinked at the girl in surprise as she lost consciousness, a giggle escaping his lips at the way she was gripping his robe in her hands. She was a strange one, with hair the color of fire nearly as long as his own and green eyes that put a Reapers to shame. He would have thought she was one of them if not for her strangely cross-shaped pupils and the energy she was giving off, unlike anything a Reaper or a demon could emanate.

Undertaker gathered her into his arms, picking her up in a bridal carry and jumping lightly out of the grave he had dug yesterday. The girl burrowed into his arms, drawing another giggle from the Reaper, as he headed for his shop. He had a feeling she would be very entertaining to keep around, the Earl and the Bizarre Dolls could only keep him amused for so long. He wondered how that demon would react to her, he would certainly enjoy it's reaction, "Heeheehee, this world really is funny."


End file.
